Huawei P9 unboxing and hands-on review

Huawei just made its play against leading rivals Apple and Samsung, with the new P9 and P9 Plus. We unbox the smaller P9 to see what’s inside.

The company’s made notable strides in recent years, pulling the brand from its beginnings in the affordable smartphone space, up to a premium player, with the likes of the Ascend P7, P8 and Mate S. Apple’s approach sees consideration placed upon every aspect of iPhone ownership, including the unboxing experience, and it’s clear to see that Huawei has decided to place that same importance on the P9’s packaging too.

The box itself is made from a high weight textured card adorned with only a pair of foiled Huawei logos, some basic device information on the side and the phone’s name front and centre. There is one other embellishment worth noting, however – Leica’s name. The prestige photography brand was brought in to help develop the P9’s distinctive dual camera arrangement and naturally Huawei wants to show that off from the moment you see the box.

Lift off the lid and you’re presented with the phone, wrapped in a plastic layer highlighting key hardware controls, microphone placement, and its hybrid SIM tray; which can accept two SIM cards or a SIM card and a microSD card up to 1TB.

The phone features an all-metal unibody, a waistline thinner than both the iPhone 6S and the Samsung Galaxy S7, as well as a distinctive 12-megapixel dual camera arrangement, set with a black glass bar that runs along the top of the phone’s back, not dissimilar to the one employed on the Google Nexus 6P.

Putting the phone to one side, the tray it was mounted in lifts out to reveal three compartmentalised boxes. In the lower right you’ll find the USB power adapter, which is capable of fast-charging the P9. In the top left Huawei has graced the P9 with a reversible Type-C USB connection and naturally, includes a compatible cable and a pair of earphones with an inline remote that look suspiciously like a derivative of Apple’s EarPods.

Along the left side of the box you’re left with a card sheath containing any legal and warranty information as well as a simple, pressed metal SIM tool.

It’s enjoyable to unbox the Huawei P9 and it’s clear that time, effort and consideration have been poured into user’s experience of opening it up for the first time. The phone is set to arrive in the UK around April 20th, with its larger sibling set to hit the UK one month later, around May 20th.